بَغِىٌّ

Full Definition

بَغِىٌّ , accord. to some, of the measure فَعِيلٌ; accord. to others, of the measure فَعُولٌ, originally بَغُوىٌ; [if of the former, originally meaning “ sought; ” and if of the latter, originally meaning “ seeking; ”] and therefore [in either case] not admitting the affix ة: A fornicatress, an adulteress, or a prostitute; as also بَغُوٌّ [of the measure فَعُولٌ, and therefore anomalous, like نَهُوٌّ]: بَغِىٌّ is not applied to a man, nor بَغِيَّةٌ to a woman: pl. بَغَايَا. [See an ex. voce مَهْرٌ.]
2 Also A female slave, whether she be a fornicatress or an adulteress or a prostitute or not; not meant to imply revilement, though originally applied to female slaves because of their prostitution of themselves: or a free woman who is a fornicatress or an adulteress or a prostitute: so in the K: but correctly, or a fornicatress or an adulteress or a prostitute, whether free or a slave: and a female singer, though chaste; because of fornication's being originally attributable to such a person: pl. as above. One says, قَامَتْ عَلَى رُؤُسِهِمُ البَغَايَا [The female slaves stood over their heads].
3 بَغَايَا also signifies The scouts, or companies of scouts, that precede an army: but the sing. of this is بَغِيَّةٌ .

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Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon

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